Resilient wheel.



O. A. HOWELL.

RESILIBNT WHEEL.

APPLICATION I'ILILD AUG. 20, 1912.

1 ,057, 1 Patented Mar. 25, 1913,

wwewtoz Q- \JIK- CH PH ccn. WASHINGTON D c 0mm artto'mwa CHARLES A.HOWELL, OF HOWE, NEBRASKA.

. RESILIENT WHEEL.

Application filed August 20, 1912. Serial No. 716,074.

Specification of Letters Ifatent.

Patented Mar. 25, 1913.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES A. HOWELL, acitizen of the United States, residing at Howe, in the county of Nemahaand State of Nebraska, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Resilient Wheels; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

My invention relates to improvements in vehicle wheels, and particularlyto that class known as resilient wheels.

The object of my invention is to provide resilient connections betweenthe hub and rim, and also between the spokes and rim, whereby the loadis resiliently supported, and the shocks incident to abrupt starting orstopping of the vehicle are entirely absorbed within the wheel.

Another object is to provide a wheel wherein relative lateral or rockingmovement of the hub and rim is positively prevented.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a wheelconstructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a similar view ofa portion of the wheel, in which several of the parts are removed, and,Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view through a portion of the wheel,taken at right angles to F i 2.

Referring to the drawings, 1 represents a hub, and 2 the spokesprojecting radially therefrom. The rim 3 is formed in two parts, each ofthe parts being provided with inwardly directed flanges 4, the abuttingfaces of which are provided with radial sockets or seats 5 for thereception of the spokes 2. The parts of the rim 3 are adapted to be heldtogether by means of suitable bolts 6, which take through said rim atspaced intervals. For resiliently centering the hub 1 within the rim 3,springs 7 are provided and positioned over the spokes 2,

between the periphery of the hub 1 and the inner faces of the parts ofthe rim 3.

As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the seats 5 for the spokes are formed byrecessing the abutting faces of the parts of the rim 3 a sufficientdepth to accommodate one-half of the spokes 2, the width of saidrecesses however, being greater than the diameter of said spokes,whereby the hub is allowed a limited rotary movement within the rim 3,but relative rocking or lateral movement of the two arts is prevented.

In ord dr to resiliently center the spokes 2 within the seats 5, Iprovide the ends thereof with right angularly extending arms 8, whichare mounted in the auxiliary seats 9 formed in the side walls of theseats 5. The opposite extremities of the auxiliary seats 9 are reducedto provide shoulders 10, against which bear the springs 11 mounted overthe arms 8, the opposite ends of said springs being engaged against thespokes 2. As clearly shown in Fig. 2, the auxiliary seats 9 are ofsufficient width as to allow the arms 8 free movement transverselytherein when the spokes are moved to accommodate the radial movement ofthe Spokes between the parts.

The hub 1 is provided upon opposite faces thereof with flanges l2,removably secured thereto by bolts 13. The flanges 12 are of suflicientsize to partially overlap the inwardly directed flanges 4 of the rim 3,while the side faces of said inwardly directed flanges are provided withseats within which are positioned bearing balls 14, against which theinner faces of the flanges 12 are engaged.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that I have provided a spring wheelhaving a rim yieldably or resiliently supported from the hub, wherebyshocks imparted to the hub are absorbed between the hub and the rim. Itwill be further seen that I have provided a spring wheel of considerablestrength, and one in which the shocks incident to abrupt starting andstopping of the vehicle are effectively absorbed by resilient meanspositioned between the spokes and the rim of the wheel.

What I claim is A spring wheel comprising a hub and spokes projectingradially therefrom, a two part rim, seats within said rim for movablyreceiving the outer resilient means disposed between the hub and therim, auxiliary seats formed in the side walls of said first mentionedseats having the opposite extremities thereof reduced to form shoulders,cross arms carried ends of said spokes,

by said spokes and movablypositioned In testimony whereof I have signedmy Within said-auxiliaryseats, the extremities naineto thisspecification-in the presence of of said cross arms extending into theretwo subscribing Witnesses.

duced ends of said resilientseats, springs; CHARLES A. HOWELL. 5 carriedby each of said cross arms disposed Witnesses:

between the spokes and the shoulders formed E; A. RHODES,

at the reduced ends of the auxiliary seats. J. A. MAYER.

Copies of this patent may b'obtained-for fire cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

. Washington, D. G.

